Measures to heighten Kiswahili outlined
DODOMA: THE government has outlined activities to be implemented in the next financial year, including the establishment of 100 Kiswahili teaching centres abroad in efforts to commercialise the language and expand its use.
Minister for Culture, Arts and Sports, Dr Damas Ndumbaro, told the National Assembly on Thursday while requesting the lawmakers to approve 285.3bn/- budget estimates for his docket that the centres will be established in collaboration with the Diaspora to promote, spread and further enhance the language.
Dr Ndumbaro said that Kiswahili is spoken by over 500 million people worldwide and has become a commodity, adding that the National Strategy for Commercialisation of Kiswahili Language has generated numerous employment opportunities for professionals, including teachers, translators, interpreters, journalists, book authors and Tanzanians in general.
“Our noble language, Kiswahili, has been declared an official working language of the African Union. This decision was made at the Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union, held on February 6, 2022, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,” said Dr Ndumbaro.
He said the nation is proud of the expansion of the use of Kiswahili both within and outside Africa, and its recognition by regional and international communities as an official language of communication has made it a valuable commodity on the global stage.
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“The recognition of Kiswahili as an official language in the East African Community, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU) has elevated the status, position and value of this language, making it an opportunity to promote economic diplomacy and cooperation among its users,” explained Dr Ndumbaro.
He said other activities that will be implemented by the National Kiswahili Council (BAKITA) in the 2024/2025 financial year include commemorating the third World Kiswahili Language Day, where there will be the Mwalimu Nyerere Special Kiswahili Award presented in France.
The Minister further said the council will also implement the National Strategy for Commercialisation of Kiswahili Language 2022-2032 by providing training in teaching Kiswahili as a foreign language to 150 diaspora and organising a Kiswahili symposium abroad, which will be held in November this year in Havana, Cuba.
Other activities include publishing two Kiswahili teaching and learning books, strengthening the language nationally and promoting it internationally, providing education on the fluent and standardised use of Kiswahili by producing and airing a total of 750 radio and television programmes.
Dr Ndumbaro told the Parliamentarians that in the coming financial year, his office has outlined sixteen priorities that aim to have a vibrant sector whose contribution to national economic development is tangible.
On promoting traditions and culture, he said the ministry will organise a national traditional festival in every region in collaboration with the private sector.
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“We want to protect cultural norms and traditions to provide a room for the current and future generations to promote and protect them,” said Dr Ndumbaro.
The ministry will also engage in a special programme to promote arts dubbed BASATA Vibes, in which artists will be used as a tool for the promotion of talents to higher heights. Through the Tanzania Culture and Arts Fund, the ministry will provide capacity-building training, set up infrastructures, learning and teaching technology to cope with technological advancement.
“We want to carry on a major transformation in the cultural and artist avenues, as it is among the areas which, if well monitored, can be used as a source of revenue, contribute to employment opportunities and foreign earnings,” he said.
He said the cultural and arts fund has been mandated to conduct formalisation of artistic works countrywide, especially for upcoming artists.
Dr Ndumbaro said the fund will issue soft loans to 475 projects, which is an estimate of 18 in every region, whereas it is expected that more than 71,250 jobs will be created.
Moreover, to come with a level playing ground and avert uncalledfor conflicts among the stakeholders, the ministry announced to harmonise and come up with policies, laws, strategies, rules, regulations that run the culture, arts and sports sectors so that they operate commercially.
The majority of the Members of Parliament who debated the ministry’s budget called for strong measures to promote Kiswahili as well as uphold the country’s norms and traditions.
